Chapter 7 - Secrets of the Sub-Level
As they sprinted deeper into the tunnel, the air grew colder and smelled of stagnant water and old iron. Claire struggled to maintain her footing while holding the newborn, her nurse's uniform torn and stained with soot. Ryan limped behind them, his police radio dead, relying solely on the faint glow of the monitor. ""Where does this tunnel lead?"" Ryan asked between ragged breaths, his gun drawn and pointed back toward the dark corridor. ""To the old drainage canal connected to the bay,"" Ethan replied without breaking his stride. ""There's a boat waiting—if the extraction team hasn't found it yet."" Claire looked down at the baby in her arms and gasped. The blue blanket was soaked with sweat, and the infant's skin had turned an alarming shade of translucent pale. ""Ethan, his temperature is dropping too fast. The metabolic override is reversing,"" she cried out, dropping to her knees on the damp concrete. Ethan stopped dead in his tracks, turning around with a look of absolute horror as the monitor began to emit a steady, ominous flatline tone.
